New Orleans Pelicans coach Monty Williams said he doubts shooting guard Eric Gordon will return for the final five games of the regular season because of his tendinitis problem in his left knee.

''He’s getting evaluations on his knee,’’ Williams said after Tuesday's practice. ''It’s the same place (Gordon’s situation) we were the other day. I doubt that he’ll play anymore this year, but that’s me.''

After traveling with the team for this past Wednesday’s game against the Denver Nuggets, Gordon left for Los Angeles to get his knee examined by doctors.

After last season,Gordon spent nearly all of the offseason going through rehabilitation work in Los Angeles after he underwent surgery last May to remove loose particles from his left ankle.

Because of his knee problem,Gordon will miss his 10th consecutive game on Wednesday night when the Pelicans play the Phoenix Suns at the Smoothie King Center.

Gordon began experiencing tendinitis problems in his left knee during a March 21st game against the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena. He was forced to leave the game in the first quarter and did not return.

''It's not like something that's going to keep on going for a long
time,'' Gordon said last week. ''It's
almost like a sprain, but I just got to monitor it and keep on
exercising.''

A source close to the team said this past Friday that after Gordon underwent a medical evaluation, the next course of action could result in more treatment.

Prior to this season, Gordon had played in just 51 games since he was acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers in 2011 for All-Star point guard Chris Paul because of recurring problems involving his right knee.

Last season, Gordon led the team with a 17.0 scoring average, but he missed the first 29 games because of a patella tendon disorder and bone bruise in his right knee.

Before his knee problem occurred, Gordon had shown signs of durability, playing in 64 games and averaging 15.4 points. He missed three games in December because of sore right hip, and he sat out a March 12 game against the Memphis Grizzlies after coming down with flu-like symptoms.

SET FOR SURGERY: Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson was scheduled for surgery on Tuesday in Los Angeles to correct a herniated disc in his neck. After Tuesday’s practice, Williams said he didn’t have an update yet.

''I haven’t spoken with him,’’ Williams said.''I just talked before he left the other day and I had a real good conversation. I’ll speak with him later on this week.’’

Anderson hasn't played since a Jan. 3 game against the Boston Celtics when he collided with Celtics forward Gerald Wallace. The Pelicans said in a statement that it decided surgery was needed "after consulting with a team of physicians."

Anderson is the third Pelicans player to require season-ending surgery, which includes point guard Jrue Holiday (stress fracture tibia) and center Jason Smith (knee).